Man of the World
by Mononoke-hime x sukai kurora
Summary: It was supposed to be a normal day. Kiyo was supposed to take his son to school and come home to Megumi and their daughter, but the risks of his power had finally caught up to him. Now Kiyo's life is hanging by a thread as terrorists hold his life in their hands. The question his son asked echoes in his mind. "What is...the man of the world?"
1. Chikara

_ Chikara _

Kiyo Takamine was walking with his young son Atsuo on a rather warm December day. The snow was falling softly in his hair, and Kiyo looked back to find his son look curiously at the snow falling and melting against his skin. _Zatch would be playing with the snow, shouting at me of how wonderful it was. _It had been almost twelve years since Kiyo had said goodbye to a mamodo named Zatch Bell. It had been a heartbreaking parting for both of them at the end, but in their hearts the friends knew that Zatch had to go back to his world to become the Mamodo King. _Sometimes when I see my son smile I see Zatch, _Kiyo thought to himself. He looked back to find his six year old son lost in thought. He could see his wife's eyes staring back at him through his son, and saw himself in subtle ways. The way the child valued himself, his intelligence, and his hunger for knowledge. Atsuo was the most skilled musician in his class, partly from his mother's teaching. _My son is more like Megumi than me, and I suppose you would like that Zatch. _

Kiyo and Megumi had not yet told their son about Zatch or of the battle that had caused them to meet and fall in love. _"It is too soon for his mind," _Megumi had said when Atsuo had asked about the picture of Zatch and the other mamodo when he had been comforted during a nightmare. Kiyo had agreed. They would tell their son when he was old enough to understand. _Although I find it amusing that Atsuo is able to understand the causes of World War I, and we don't know if he'll understand about the mamodo world or the battle for King. _Kiyo was a historian for a living. He and his son spent many of their hours poring over books about Ancient Egypt, the Roman Empire, the Russian Revolution, the Tokugawa era, and the Chinese dynasties. Atsuo was curious about the vast library his father had in his study when he was only three years old, and had wandered in when Kiyo was studying a book. Since then, Kiyo had made a smaller bookshelf for his son so that they both could read and study various works at the same time. Kiyo liked it best when Megumi came to read to their son. Her sweet voice filled his ears, and Megumi always teased him for never getting his studying done when she was around. _"Would you like me to leave?" _Kiyo shook his head, thinking of his lovely beloved wife. They had been married seven years, and their love had been just as potent as it had been when they first married. Their traditions – staying up late to watch the stars, watching the dawn, and discussing the current hardships of the world – had not diminished with their Atsuo's birth or of Megumi's most recent pregnancy and the birth of their daughter Yūki. _I love her now more than ever, _Kiyo thought with a smile.

"_Tousan?" _Atsuo broke Kiyo's thoughts. The father looked down at his son, surprised that had such a serious expression on his face.

"_Hai?"_

"What is…the man of the world?"

_Man of the world? _Kiyo wondered. _Where did Atsuo come up with a deep question like that?_

"I've been listening to new music to play," Atsuo began. His voice was quiet, and he seemed afraid to look up at his father. "And…Yūto's _oniisan _showed me a new soundtrack from an anime he likes, and it was so sad, _Tousan_." Kiyo was startled to find his son crying with tears streaking down his face. His dark brown eyes were bright. "I don't know why, but it seemed as if the music was crying tears of blood as it played. I was wondering if you knew what the man of the world is."

"Tears of blood?" Kiyo questioned. Atsuo slightly shirked away from his father, knowing bin of how angry he could become sometimes. "That sounds like it comes from an anime." Kiyo shook his head in exasperation. "You're too young to be watching or hearing anything from _Naruto Shippuden_, Atsuo." His voice softened as his son remained troubled. "Why don't we watch _Castle in the Sky _liked we did last night?" His son's smile was all it took to calm his confused mind. Somehow the forbidding feeling remained as Atsuo excitedly exclaimed about seeing _Castle in the Sky _again. _Something's not right, _Kiyo thought as the feeling he had grew deeper embedded in his mind. Suddenly his eyes transformed into a ringed look, and without even looking at his son, he said, "Atsuo, go hide. There's a garbage bin that can conceal you from them." His slim fingers pointed at the trash bin towards the alleyway they were approaching. "Go, Atsuo."

"But _Tousan_…school…"

"_Go!"_

At that moment Kiyo calmed. He felt his son slip away from him and hide. _So it's come to this,_ Kiyo thought as an ominous black van pulled up next to the sidewalk. He remembered thinking that he should be careful about using his power; otherwise the wrong people would get their hands on it. _It's amazing how they found this out with such little information,_ Kiyo thought as the door opened. A tall and clean-shaven Middle Eastern man stepped out. He was wearing a black Western business suit with a blue tie, and Kiyo observed with interest that this man – Abdul Ali – had pale green eyes. Even without his power, Kiyo could sense the man had a malice plan in mind. "Takamine Kiyo, you are coming with us." _He used my name in the traditional way,_ Kiyo thought with interest. He eyed the van, knowing with his ability that there were five other heavily armed men inside.

"If I refuse?" He forced himself to not make his voice shake.

"You will cause death and destruction to everyone you care about," Abdul said calmly, "starting with your boy hiding behind the garbage can." _They know me this well._ Kiyo started to panic but then remembered to calm.

"_Wakarimashita." _He didn't look back at his terrified son as he was led inside the van. He didn't think of the torture and interrogation he would face, or of what terrifying power he had since he had died and came back to live Kiyo's only thought was, _Take care of them, Atsuo,_ as the van drove away.


	2. Kokoro

_Kokoro _

The van was silent after the kidnapping. But as the destination came nearer, the leader of the terrorists spoke to Kiyo. They were sitting side by side each other.

"We need to know the best way how to erase the world as we know it." The man was calm compared to Kiyo's frantic beating heart. "Your Answer Talker ability is perfect for this situation." _Just like multiple times over, _Kiyo thought as he remembered battles past. Leo had wanted to destroy the human and mamodo world; Clear Note had wanted to use his King's privilege and erase every mamodo who had lived. _They want me to destroy the world._

"What makes you think I'll tell you a way?" Kiyo demanded. Given, he knew the answer, but he was bidding his time.

Abdul Ali sneered in his face. "Surely you know the answer to that, Takamine-_san_." Kiyo didn't react. The terrorist shrugged. "We don't know how you'll answer." He paused, and Kiyo inwardly shuddered at the bloodlust in his green eyes. "We only know that it'll happen." Rough hands sized Kiyo by his torso, squeezing the breath out of him. The Japanese man found himself looking at pure white snow with a faint December sun above his head. _Where am I? _he thought. The brief serene sight disappeared when the person carrying him opened a door. Dampness was immediately felt on Kiyo's face. He couldn't see anything; there were no windows and he heard the eerie _drip drip _coming from the leaking ceiling. Instant fear took hold of him as he was thrown onto the hard concrete floor. Kiyo managed to protect his head, but pain radiated from his body from the contact. Strong arms pulled him up again, and Kiyo struggled. A hard fist contacted with his skull, and white-hot pain surged through him. Kiyo landed on the concrete floor like a doll, hearing a dull crack. _I probably got a concussion._ This time Kiyo was motionless when he felt himself being lifted up and his arms were chained. _I'm hung, _Kiyo thought dully. Abdul Ali appeared before him as his minions roughly took off Kiyo's shoes.

"We'll find a way to break you," the leader purred. He took his callused hand and broke one of Kiyo's fingers. A scream threatened to escape from Kiyo, but he swallowed it. He continued to think like this as the rest of the fingers on his hand were broken. By that time Kiyo was breathing hard and he fought hard to not moan in agonizing pain. Abdul Ali was looking at his prisoner in interest now. "I never knew that the Japanese were this strong," he said in wonderment. He nodded his head to another terrorist who carried a cattle prod. Kiyo found blood dripping down his face as he bit his lip from screaming. Watching Abdul Ali's eyes, he knew that was what the terrorist wanted. Kiyo's chest ached from the second degree burns that crisscrossed his body. The chains were burning into his skin, and as the breath wheezed out of him, he thought of Atsuo's bright smile. _We were supposed to watch Castle in the Sky after he came home,_ Kiyo thought with great sadness. Suddenly despair overcame him as the answer to the question that had plagued his mind ever since the terrorists came. Tears came to his eyes, masquerading the bruised that covered his face. _Megumi… Atsuo…Yūki…_ The despair had disappeared as quickly as it had come, replaced by determination. _I'm sorry, _he thought as the torture began again.

Hours later Kiyo's shirt was disheveled and ripped, coated with blood. Wounds and burns crisscrossed his entire body. His toes and fingers on both left and right were broken in awkward angles. _I think three or more of my ribs are broken, _he thought as failed to breathe deeply. _Hopefully I haven't punctured a lung. _The terrorists had left him alone for moment to replenish their plans since he hadn't given to their torture. _I won't give in, _Kiyo thought with a smile. _Especially since… _He coughed, causing his body severe pain, but what surprised him most was the blood coating his lips. _It's almost over._

* * *

Megumi Takamine was putting her infant daughter Yūki for a nap when she heard the door to the house slam shut. _I know those steps, _she thought to herself as she hurried down the stairs. _Why is Atsuo home so early?_ Her son was standing in the doorway, his eyes looking down morosely at the wooden floor. Sweat slickened his hair, and he was breathing hard. _Where's Kiyo? _A forbidding feeling flowed through her veins, and she approached her small son cautiously. "Atsuo?" The boy looked at her through swollen eyes. Megumi forced her voice to remain calm even though a single thought was running through her mind. Cold fear pulsed through her. "Where is your father?"

"He's gone!" Atsuo suddenly screamed. Thick tears were running down his face now. His small dark brown eyes were closed shut. "They took him," he whispered more quietly. Megumi took her small son in her arms as he sobbed. _It's finally come, _Megumi thought. She forced herself not to cry.

The police came half an hour later. Megumi had settled Atsuo down with red bean ice cream and _Castle in the Sky. _She watched him at the corner of her eye, relaxing now that he was completely engrossed in the movie. _They were supposed to watch that together, _she remembered sadly. Megumi's attention turned to the two police officers.

"How was your husband kidnapped, Takamine-_san_?"

"My husband and our son were walking to school when a white van pulled up next to the sidewalk. There was a Middle Eastern man wearing a Western business suit who threatened to harm anyone my husband cared about if he did not go with them." Megumi swallowed, remembering vividly of how self-sacrificing Kiyo could be. "This is from a second-hand account."

"Who was it that saw the kidnapping?" The police officer was writing down notes.

"Our son, Takamine Atsuo."

The officer sighed, running his hand through his hand through his hair. "We need to talk to your son, Takamine-_san_. In order to the gather the most evidence as possible," he continued with his eyes bright with empathy. "I hope you understand."

_"Wakarimashita." _Megumi walked over to the living room and talked gently to her son. His small head nodded, and didn't seem to mind when his mother stopped the movie. She watched as her son talked politely to the policeman as they asked him various questions. When they asked him if he had seen the license plate that had been on the van, Megumi felt fear growing in her stomach. _If there was kanji on the plate, Atsuo won't be able to read it or understand it. _She was right on that part, but Atsuo was able to redraw the three kanji that had appeared on the van's license plate. She allowed herself to smile at the police officers' amazement. _That's our son, Kiyo._

Finally they asked her one last question. "Do you know why these men would take your husband, Takamine-_san_?" _Of course, _Megumi thought to herself. She remained silent as the police officers waited for her response. _The people who kidnapped Kiyo wanted to use his Answer Talker ability to their advantage. They wanted him to answer them. But…Kiyo and I promised each other that we wouldn't tell others about the Answer Talker. Any government will treat Kiyo as they treated Dufort all those years ago. I can't let my husband become a human experiment. _Megumi's heart was breaking as she thought of this. Her beloved husband could die if she didn't allow the police to know the truth. He was everything to her. When she had married him, Megumi had given up her career as a singer, and she hadn't been happier they day Atsuo was born. _I can't not see those eyes again_, Megumi thought as tears flowed from her eyes. _I can't not see his smile again. I have to hear his voice again. _

"Takamine-_san_?"

"Every one thousand years, there is a battle to determine the Mamodo King." Megumi's voice was calm and collected. She had made her choice. "One hundred mamodo children are sent with a spell book to the human world to battle. When the book is burnt, they are disqualified from the battle and return to the human world. I know this sounds strange," she said, observing the police officers' shocked faces, "but every word I'm speaking is true. The one hundred mamodo are paired up with a human to take care of them and recite their spells. My husband and I were one of the humans who were paired with the mamodo, which is how we met. One time in battle my husband died…and he came back to life." Megumi shook at the nightmarish memory. "With that, he gained an ability known as the Answer Talker, which can answer any question that appears in his mind. That's why…he was kidnapped."

The police stared at her for a couple moments, but it was Atsuo who spoke. "That's how you met?" Megumi smiled at her son's wide eyes, knowing that he had been eavesdropping on the conversation. _"Hai, _Atsuo."

The police told her that if they would find anything else, they would call her, and they left. Megumi left Atsuo to finish _Castle in the Sky _as she held the baby Yūki in her arms. _She looks so much like her father, _Megumi thought as she stroked her daughter's untidy dark brown hair. _She has his eyes too. _Yūki only been born a month ago, and Megumi had a sudden fear that her daughter would never get to know her father. She laid down the newborn infant and heard a familiar sound, causing her to smile as she watched her son seeing the credits of the movie. _The ending theme song of Castle in the Sky._ _Kimi Wo Notese. _

_"Ano chiheisen kagayaku no wa,"_ she sang sweetly, _"doko ka ni kimi o kakushite iru kara…" _Megumi singing abruptly caused her to stop, as Atsuo bolted away from the living room and ran upstairs. "Atsuo!" Normally the child adored that song. So did Kiyo and Megumi, for different reasons. It reminded them of the times they had with Zatch and Tia. The adventures and love they had for each other seemed to translate into this entire song. _The reason the horizon shines is that somewhere it's hiding you…_ As Megumi was thinking of the lyrics, she entered the room where her son was most likely to be. _Kiyo… _Their son was curled in his chair, sniffiling and crying. _"Dosta?" _Atsuo's red-rimmed eyes met her own tearing ones. It broke Megumi's heart to see her son suffering this way. _"Tousan _was supposed to sing _Kimi Wo Notese _with us, _Kaasan_!"

* * *

They were refusing him water and food now. Kiyo felt his mind blur, trying to see the dim light that the terrorists now gave him. He shut his eyes, trying to dim the nausea he felt whenever he opened his eyes. The room spun, and Kiyo licked his lips in vain to quench his thirst. New blood was now flowing over his old, and Kiyo was having a hard enough time breathing. It reminded him of the other time his life was in peril. _Only this time… _Suddenly he felt the same aura nearing his face. _Abdul Ali…_ For a moment, he thought of his son, Atsuo, and of the question he had asked before he was taken. _"What…is the man of the world?" I know the answer now…Atsuo._

"Are you ready to break?"

_"Hai,"_ Kiyo gasped. He swallowed blood and tried to make his weakening voice audible and his breath even. "I want…to talk…to my…wife first…_ongegai shimasu_."

"Very well." The terrorist put a cell phone to Kiyo's ear and the dial rang. The voice Kiyo had missed so much rang through his ears.

"Megumi…"


	3. Utsusemi

_ Utsusemi _

"Kiyo…"

Megumi's sweet voice echoed in his ears. Kiyo allowed himself to smile. Although he felt the anxiety in her voice, he wasn't afraid.

"Are…you okay?" It took all the energy he had to talk.

"It's not me you should be worrying about, Kiyo. It's you." Megumi's voice was close to breaking, and Kiyo heard other voices in the background.

_They're trying to trace me, _Kiyo thought as his breathing slowed and his eyes grew weak. _No matter… _"I'm glad I got…to see you, Megumi…before the end." Blood filled his mouth, and Kiyo found it hard to not choke on his own bodily fluids. "Tell Zatch…I'm sorry…for I won't be able…to meet him...again as I said we would."

"What are you talking about, Kiyo? You'll see Zatch again." There was a catch in Megumi's voice, and Kiyo wished that he could comfort her. "You just have to hold on."

"I wish I could have spent more time with our son and daughter…but Megumi…please listen." Kiyo took a shuddering breath. "I know what…the man of the world is. Or…rather not what but _who_. A man of the world…is a person…who sacrifices themselves for…the world. Tell Atsuo that." His weak muscles obeyed him and he smiled. "I want to hear your voice again…my love…before I die."

"Kiyo-_chan_…"

"You haven't called me that before," Kiyo said with a strangled laugh. The laugh caused him to cough rapidly, and he heard splatters of blood falling onto the floor. "Now please…my love…talk to me…"

"I love you, Kiyo. Remember the poem you gave to me before we were married? I remember every single word, and every word is true. You are my breath, you are my happiness…and you are my life." Kiyo felt salty tears entering his mouth as he heard Megumi's voice. _How will I be able to get out of this? _The man had thought as he was thrown to the ground. The answer was simple. He would die. _Three minutes after noon on December tenth, I will die of complications of a punctured lung. I intend to die listening to the voice I most hold dear. _

_ "Aishiteru!"_

Kiyo smiled for the last time as his consciousness was slipping away. He didn't hear the screaming voices of the terrorists as he faded away. He was only aware of hearing his wife, Megumi, telling him he loved him over and over again. _Yokatta… _Kiyo thought, closing his eyes, seeing only her. _Yo…katta… _

Thus Takamine Kiyo died.

* * *

The trace was made before Megumi could no longer hear Kiyo's voice. The screams of his kidnappers were cut-off from the breaking of the cell phone. Megumi could only listen to her beating heart as she remembered of what her husband had said._ "I want to hear your voice again…my love…before I die." He won't die, _Megumi furiously told herself. _He…can't. _She thought of everything she and her husband had been through. She fought against the tears that were starting to leak from her eyes. _Kiyo…_ Kiyo's mother and father had been certain of that as well, and had helped her in the two trying days after their son was kidnapped. They understood her grief and worry, and encouraged Megumi to go to the police station when she was informed there was a new lead on her husband's case. They had stayed to look after the two children. _The police informed me that Kiyo was kidnapped by a fundamental terrorist organization that believes in destroying the world for their ideals. _It was only a moment later did Megumi get the call. Now the lone woman waited anxiously as the police officers hunted down where the trace originated. Her stomach was tight; her vision was blurred as memories after memories of Kiyo overwhelmed her. Megumi's mind was numb and empty, and she was almost grateful when the police came back.

"I'm sorry, Takamine-_san_. The terrorists have been arrested but...we were too late." The words refused to have any meaning until Megumi saw the dark crimson smeared across their sleeves. It was as if she had become deaf the next moment, for she did not understand what the officers had said after that. She could see their lips moving but no words were heard. _Kiyo is... _Megumi's only thought was now on her beloved husband who was now dead. _He's...dead. _The officers had said that she had almost fainted and screamed; Megumi didn't remember that. She only remembered the feel of the soft chair as she was sitting down, numb. "We found his body, Takamine-_san_. Your husband was hanging from the chains that were digging into his flesh and there was a small puddle of blood on the floor. There was such much blood and burnt flesh we don't know how he survived that long." Megumi remembered the other time Kiyo had been bloodied beyond recognition. His battle with Leo had cost him his life. _Only this time he's not coming back. _Her body shook at the thought. Megumi clenched her eyes shut to turn off the suden rush of grief, but the agonizing emotion remained. She was faintly aware of the female officer holding her hand tenderly as she softly maoned and as tears flowed from her eyes. "Your husband is a hero, Takamine-_san_. He didn't tell the answers to the terrorists. He...saved the world." Megumi thought she heard a tremor in the voice that was speaking to her, and felt the tight fingers encircling her hand. "We're so very sorry." Megumi felt her her heart filled with emptiness as she was driven to her home. Kiyo's mother and father were reading in the living room, and looked up in shock when they saw her swollen face. Her eyes were bloodshot and it only a moment for Hana Takamine to realize what was wrong. Her lips trembled and she couldn't speak. The book she was reading fell onto the floor. Megumi reached for her mother-in-law's arms and pulled her into an embrace. They had both cried to sleep when the day was done.

Kiyo's abduction and heroism was reported all over the world after his death. Surprisingly the media did not bother the grieving Takamine family. However, the warehouse where Kiyo had died in was torn down. When Megumi had told Astuo that his father wasn't coming home, the boy didn't appear to understand. Unlike all the times after school, the boy did not enter his father's study or play his music. The violin he adored was not touched, and the child spent his time gazing at the sky. Megumi grieved and mourned as she made funeral arrangements. She could do nothing else, it seemed. Kiyo's friends that he made in high school expressed their sympathies, and in all honesty, Megumi didn't know what to say to them. What had happened to the graceful woman she once had been? She had never felt so safe than in Kiyo's warm and gentle arms. And now he was gone. Kiyo wouldn't be revived this time, and it crushed her heart so much that the only reason why she still functioned in the morning was for her son's sake. Atsuo deserved it, for what he was going through. The music that had been Kiyo's lullay when he had taken a rare nap was now only a memory. Kiyo's parents had taken over the responsibility of raisning Yūki to break their minds away from the grief from their only son's death. Megumi noticed that they could not bear to enter the living room, for Kiyo's picutre now graced _tokonoma_ as well as Megumi's parennts. One night when she was unable to sleep from the memories of Kiyo, Megumi heard Atsuo's breathtaking music from his room. She stood near his door, listening as the sound drifted into her ears. The tragic notes overwhelmed her with an emotion she hadn't experienced since she had gotten the news that Kiyo had died. Despair and grief and agony almost rendered her motionless, but she approached Atsuo as she saw his tears trailing along the strings of his violin._ "A man of the world…is a person…who sacrifices themselves for…the world." _Megumi had been surprised when her son had asked her what the man of the world was since he hadn't spoken for two days since his father's death. She glanced at the manuscript and the bold characters above the notes. _Utsuemi... _

"Atsuo, why are you crying?"

"I know who's the man of the world." The child was calm despite the tears running down his face and a glassy appearance in his eyes. _"Tousan…wa…ustuemi..." _

"_A man of the world…is a person…who sacrifices themselves for…the world."_

"He died for the world…didn't he, _Kaasan_?"

"He did, Atsuo. Your father was the man of the world."

* * *

A white marble plaque was centered along the _sakura _trees near where Kiyo died. It bore these words.

_Kiyo Takamine_

_September 5, 1991 - December 10, 2019_

_The Man of the World_

And every day someone anonymous would place a flower over the memorial.


End file.
